Without You, We Would Be Nothing
by KirbyKitten456
Summary: In a near death experience at Squilliam's concert, Squidward is visited by an angel who shows him what life for his friends would be like without him. Sponge/Squid, Squid/Squill, some Sponge/Squill and hints of Sponge/Pat.
1. Chapter 1

"Ohhhhhhh, Squidwaaaaaard!"

Squidward winced at the loud call of his neighbor from the other room. Even though he figured he should be used to it by now, seeing as they had been dating for the past two months, the constant singsongy voice he used always annoyed him. Maybe it was because he wasn't really a happy-go-lucky person, like he was. True, he had been much happier ever since they became a couple, as it gave him some pleasure in his otherwise sad life. But something about it ticked him off.

Or maybe it was just tonight. Seeing as he and almost half the sea's population were going to see Squilliam's big concert this evening, and anything involving his almost-other half always got on his last nerve. He knew that he was going to be verbally abused and humiliated by him, as always, but the thought of seeing him play clarinet in front of so many people made him want to just punch something. He knew he couldn't play as well as Squilliam could, having been booed off stages several times at his own "concerts", and the wealthy octopus wasn't going to let him forget it.

Going back to what was originally getting on his nerves, he knew it wasn't Spongebob he was annoyed with. As his tentacles shook nervously putting on his tie, he realized how scared he was of a night of complete mortification. He took a deep breath as he straightened his tie a little bit. '_It's just one night, Squiddy... You can make it through one night of this torture.'_

Why he was even going, he wasn't sure. Some part of him figured it was to take inspiration from the octopus's work, but another thought it was because inside he had a certain soft spot for him. A very small one at that. But something made him want to be there for his old high school colleague.

"Squidwaaaaaard?" He heard a light knock on the bedroom door.

"Yes, Spongebob?" Squidward quickly buttoned up his shirt.

The door opened, and Spongebob stood at the door, smiling broadly. "What do you think of this suit?" He held up a dark purple, sequin-studded suit with a deep, ruby-colored rose pinned to the right side. It stuck out compared to his bright, yellow body.

"It's fine, I guess." Squidward had given it a slight glance, but he was mostly staring at himself in the mirror, making sure he looked presentable.

"Oh. Well I got it today while I was on my break, and...since purple is your favorite color...I thought..." He looked at the ground, slightly disappointed. "You would like it..."

Squidward sighed, now feeling guilty that he had ignored him. He turned back to face the sponge, who now hung the suit low to the ground. He gave it a good look this time, and was actually stunned by the colors and fabrics. "W-wow...it's...I mean-" He was speechless, as he came over to hold the suit in his tentacles.

His boyfriend's face immediately brightened up when he saw how impressed he was. "You like it?" He asked, eyes bright with contention.

"Yeah, i-it's amazing..." He mused, a bit jealous of how nice Spongebob's suit was compared to his plain black and white tuxedo. And jealously reminded him of how Squilliam was going to tease him for having such a plain suit. His spirits fell almost immediately and he felt his eyes graze back over to the mirror. His usual bright, maroon eyes were now a dull brown.

"Squidward?" Spongebob poked the octopus's side, eyes slightly worried as he saw how distracted he was. Then he began to notice the shaking that was going on with his tentacles. "Are you ok?"

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine." He lied, still not looking Spongebob in the eye.

"I can see you shaking..." His eyes grew rather frantic, as he hated seeing his boyfriend so distressed.

"I just said I'm _fine_, Spongebob." He said sternly, giving him a bitterer look than he intended to.

Even though he felt the harshness in his tone, he smiled at him wryly. "Does it have to do with Squilliam?" He glanced at the clenched tentacles.

Squidward felt a bead of sweat graze down his forehead. "No! Why would you think I would you think I would be nervous about going to Squilliam's concert?" He demanded, feeling himself getting more and more worked up.

"I never said anything about you being nervous..." Spongebob pointed out.

Squidward sighed and held his head in his tentacles. "Ohhh... Spongebob, how am I going to show my face to him... I'm as much of a failure now as I was the last time I saw him." He moaned, sitting down on the bed.

Spongebob walked over to sit next to him and frowned a bit. "Squidward you're not a failure." He rubbed the octopus's shoulder soothingly. "And he shouldn't call you a failure."

"Yeah, he shouldn't. But he does anyway." Squidward muttered, rubbing his throbbing temples.

"You shouldn't feel so...overpowered by him." Spongebob said, now leaning his head against his boyfriend's shoulder while still rubbing his arm. "He's just a person. A person with a lot of talent, maybe... But you have a lot of talent, too. And he knows that deep down!"

"Yeah...I _do _have talent." A smile began to form on his lips at the praise he was getting. He practically thrived on it.

"So, you shouldn't let him control you." He wrapped his arms around the octopus's neck, getting on his lap and smiling warmly. "Plus, he's from your high school, and you were friends back then, right?"

Squidward put an arm around Spongebob as he sat on his legs. "Yeah...sure. For like, a month maybe?" He frowned at the memory.

"Maybe you could try to be friends with him?" Spongebob suggested, rubbing his thighs as he sat.

Squidward shuddered a little with pleasure, but quickly composed himself so he could answer the question. "That'll be easy." He said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Don't count on it."

The sponge reached up and gave him a quick peck. "You'll be fine, Squiddy." He said sympathetically before reaching back up to kiss him full on the lips.

As they stayed in the embrace, Squidward sighed at the nickname Spongebob used. '_That's right, Squiddy! I'm living your dream!'_ Those words rang through him, reminding him of all the times Squilliam had said that to him. How much it reminded him how lowly he was. He tried to relax, which wasn't possible at the moment seeing how he was in the middle of a make-out session, but he figured that for a few hours he could make it. Despite how painful it would be to go through, he could make it. Possibly.

Squidward opened his eyes for a brief moment as his partner continued to kiss him passionately. He noticed his bedside clock. He pulled away from Spongebob, and the younger man looked at him in surprise. "Put on your suit, we have to go." He said, hurriedly, getting off the bed and looking at himself in the mirror a final time.

Spongebob sighed with lust before stepping off the bed and putting on his purple suit in a flash. He looked over at Squidward through the mirror and smiled seductively. "Well, how do I look?" He asked in a sexy tone.

Squidward saw his figure through the mirror and felt himself sweat with longing, but he smiled back. "Very sexy, indeed." He mused, then he went over to the door and opened it for the sponge, who gladly stepped through.

As they walked down the stairs, he felt his nerves tense up even more. Why was he getting so worked up about this?

Once outside, he stared up at the dark, starry sky. The current blew swiftly, as the sea flowers followed it gracefully. Suddenly a large, white limousine pulled up on their street. Their ride.

Spongebob squealed with glee and excitement and grabbed Squidward's tentacle and dragged him to the limo. Squidward groaned, hoping he wouldn't act so childish all night. Stepping in, Squidward dreaded the night that was to come.

Noticing large headlights, Squidward knew that they were now in the west side of downtown Bikini Bottom. The fanciest part of the town. The headlights were waving about in a zigzag pattern as they came closer to the old theater. Every muscle in his body seemed to be tensed up and he felt his tentacles shaking violently. He tried not to show it, but he knew Spongebob, from the seat adjacent to him, could tell. He hated feeling like this. So low and without control. And he absolutely detested showing it. Taking deep breaths, he attempting to calm himself down, knowing he couldn't possibly show himself like this in front of Squilliam. But for some reason, this somehow made him more worked up.

He felt a gentle hand pat his thighs. "You'll be ok, honey." Spongebob sympathized, smiling at him helpfully.

Squidward frowned at this. "I don't need comfort, ok Spongebob? I'll be fine." Usually it was Spongebob that would need the consoling, seeing as the OCD sponge worried about just everything in the deep blue sea. He detested being the one that needed the encouragement; it just wasn't like him to get like this.

"Alright..."

Now turning up to the theater, he noticed just how big it was. And how many camera people were there, flashing pictures of the people coming into the building. '_Good. At least there are some sane people who don't waste all their film on Squilliam.'_ He smiled a bit, seeing this as a chance for audiences all across the sea to see his own genius. Even if it was only in pictures.

"Stop right here." He told the driver up front, and he opened the door and stepped out. Immediately he was bombarded by paparazzi. All holding microphones in his face and rapidly asking him questions. He smiled broadly for all of them, answering a few of the reporter's questions.

Spongebob came out from behind him and blushed at all the limelight he was receiving, not used to it in the slightest. He giggled a bit before rushing to catch up with Squidward, who had gained some distance between them and the limousine.

"So I hear your name is Squidward?" A female fish asked Squidward tentatively. "And that you used to go to the same school as the esteemed Squilliam Fancyson?"

"Well, yes I'm honored that you recognized me." If Squidward's ego was visible, it would be almost as big as the building itself. "And we were colleagues yes. But what you haven't heard is that I was actually more-"

"Squidward!" Spongebob appeared at his sight, huffing up and down a bit due trying to squeeze past so many people. "I found you. Let's go inside." He grabbed the octopus's tentacle.

As soon as he did, millions of camera flashes went off, trying to capture the moment. Squidward sweat a bit, mad because Spongebob had interrupted him, but also that he was publicly holding hands with him. Especially in front of so many cameras. When they had started dating, he had told him that he refused to display any affection in public, afraid of what others would think. Spongebob had been reluctant, but agreed. And he was particularly pissed off that he chose a time like _now _to break that promise.

"And who might this be?" The camera woman asked, and her microphone was shoved in the octopus's face.

"Err...he's...um..." He couldn't find the right words as he felt himself freeze in place.

"Oh, I'm Spongebob Squarepants!" Spongebob cried, then wrapped his hands around the tentacle and hugged it to his side. "I'm his boyfriend." He blushed deeply.

"S-Spongebob...!" Squidward stuttered, feeling the video cameras capturing the moment. He blushed a bright red, which he knew would be visible to the viewers watching, his pale blue skin being in such a contrast to red.

"O-oh... I see." The woman looked visibly disgusted, and she quickly moved ahead.

As the camera people left with her, chuckling as they went, Squidward glared at the sponge. "Sponge...bob... What did I say about-"

"I'm sorry, honey, it slipped out.." He apologized, and rather loudly. Bystanders turned to look at the display of the sponge clinging onto Squidward.

Squidward pried his arm away, rather harshly. "Stop using the pet names." He said sternly.

Spongebob still kept his happy attitude. "Sorry..." He murmured. "Let's go inside?" He offered.

"Yeah." He muttered, trying to flush the blush out of his cheeks. As more people photographed them, he noticed the number of paparazzi decreased as they walked inside the large building.

A large stage sat in the middle of the room, a little chair set up in the middle of it along with a stand right next to it. There were chairs lined up all around the auditorium. Since they were "close friends" of Squilliams, they both had reserved seats, along with Patrick, Sandy, Mr. Krabs, and Plankton.

As they began to search for their seats, he felt Spongebob squeeze his hand from below him. "Spongebob..." He felt a bit more relaxed, seeing as there was nobody to document them together. But it still annoyed him, seeing as how so many people were coming. Only the other reserved people were there with them, however, as they had all been invited to come early to "mingle".

Before he could finish, Sandy suddenly noticed the pair from a large buffet table in the corner of the room. She smiled and ran over to greet them. She was wearing a beautiful black sequined gown. "Howdy, Spongebob!" She said, giving him a quick hug. She took note of his suit and her eyes began to shine. "That's an amazing suit ya got there! You sure know how to pick yer wardrobe." She mused.

"Aww, thanks Sandy! Your dress is beautiful, too." He said, looking at the gown with awe.

Sandy grinned. "Thanks! And hello to you to, Squidward!" She said, giving the sullen octopus a smile. "To be honest I didn't think y'all were gonna come. I'm glad you did!"

"Yeah we were debating, because Squidward was _quite _needy this morning." Spongebob said plainly, before giggling.

Squidward blushed and grew a slightly nervous look on his face. "Spongebob!" He yelled.

Sandy just giggled and looked at the two of them, hands locked. "Aww, y'all are more adorable than a june bug's ear!" She said in her thick Southern accent. She was one of the only people to know that they were dating.

Spongebob looked puzzled at this saying, but still grinned happily. "Aren't we?" He said sweetly, hugging Squidward's side.

Squidward felt his anger come to a boil. He pulled Spongebob from his side and laughed nervously.

"Well, why don'cha come 'round the back here. Everyone's here 'cept for Plankton." She offered, and walked back to the buffet table.

Once she was out of sight, Squidward gave Spongebob an annoyed look. "Spongebob! You do not say things like that to people in public!" He whispered harshly.

"S-sorry, but Sandy thought it was funny!" He giggled.

"Yeah, well, some other people won't find it funny, ok?" Squidward said, trying to keep calm, now putting his arms on the sponge's shoulders. "So...please... can you-"

"Well, well. He-llo-oooo there, Squiddy!" Squidward froze in place, hearing the familiar sound of his rival's voice in his ear.

He turned around to see his double standing behind him, wearing a long black, silky robe. He grinned widely, unibrow raised in the air. "Well, I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" He glanced down at the octopus's hand placement on Spongebob's shoulders.

"Err, no, not at all!" He quickly said, taking his hands off of him, and turning to smile nervously at his rival.

"Heh, seems like you're sweating as always, Squiddy dear." He folded his arms. "Afraid to be in my godly presence?"

Squidward frowned. "Well, I wouldn't say you're 'godly', Squilly dear." He imitated in a mocking-tone. "Just because you can paint and play clarinet, doesn't mean that you're an idol."

"Yes, and I think _you _of all people would know that. You are anything but godly." He laughed in a snooty way at his own joke. He patted Squidward on the arm. "Don't worry, you'll get there someday."

"Whatever..." He muttered, wishing he had thought of another comeback to throw at him.

Squilliam then noticed Spongebob standing behind him. "Spongy-kins!" He cried happily, and planted two light kisses on his cheeks. "Glad you could make it!"

Spongebob blushed sightly. "Hehe, anything to see your amazing clarinet-playing!" He complimented happily. "I can't wait to hear it!"

Squidward raged with anger, as Spongebob had now completely gone against him. "Oh, thank you, I know you are just dying with anticipation." He squeezed one of Spongebob's cheeks playfully. Then his eyes caught the suit. "Spongy, this suit is absolutely fabulous!" He held a little piece of it in his tentacle, staring at it in awe. "You must tell me where you got it!"

"Somewhere downtown." Spongebob replied, glowing with the praise he was getting. "You really like it?"

"Like it? It's amazing!" He mused, taking in every little detail. "If I knew there were suits out there that looked as exquisite as this, I wouldn't have worn this robe! Of course it is fine silk." He fondled the fabric of his own outfit. Then his eyes drew to Squidward's suit. "Squidward, I see you are as bland as ever with your wardrobe."

Spongebob giggled. "I told him if he wanted to borrow this one, he could! But he insisted on wearing that old thing.." He elbowed Squidward. "I don't know how long ago he got it.."

"Well it certainly wasn't in this decade, that's certain." Squilliam countered and he and Spongebob burst into laughter.

Squidward felt his face grow hot with embarrassment. He was outraged that Spongebob was doing this to him. He had promised that he would support him, but now he was teasing him along with Squilliam.

"Well then, now that we got the greetings out of the way..." He motioned to the buffet table. "Help yourselves until the rest of the audience gets here." Before going to join the others, he whispered in Squidward's ear, "That would be 30,000 seats sold." He gave him a victorious smile and he went to go join in conversation with the others.

Squidward felt his tentacles ball into fists at this. Spongebob laughed from next to him. "Aww see Squidward, he isn't as bad as you think he is!" He said. "He's really sweet!"

"How..._dare...you...!_" He cried, whipping to the side to glare at him with hatred.

"How dare I what?" Spongebob asked, blinking with innocence.

"Y-you...you're taking _his _side now?" He was trying to keep himself contained, knowing that Squilliam was only right across the room. "I thought you said that you were going to support me!"

"What do you mean, 'his side'?" Spongebob wondered. "I was just being friendly."

"You were egging him on, Spongebob..." He growled, feeling his temper boiling. "You were being just like him..."

"It's ok.. We're here with all of our friends..." He smiled at the enraged octopus. "Just take a deep breath!"

"You absolutely humiliated me!" He yelled, drawing some attention from a few bystanders. "How can you expect me to take a deep breath?"

"I can help you!" He said, wrapping his arms around the octopus's neck. "Just relax, Squiddy..."

In horror, Squidward ripped him off. "Do. not. call. me. _that._" He spoke through clenched teeth.

"But I like calling you that, Squiddy..." He whispered, and he wrapped his arms around his neck again. Before he had time to react, Spongebob kissed him passionately.

Immediately a chorus of wolf whistles and "oooohs" arose from the crowd. A few of the regular audience members had arrived and were now videotaping the ordeal. People snickered loudly and cheered for more as Spongebob continued to kiss him. Mr. Krabs' mouth dropped at the sight, never expecting to see something so intimate happen between his two crew members. But Squilliam's jaw dropped almost to the floor.

Squidward yanked Spongebob off in horror and harshly threw him back down on the ground. Spongebob gave him a despairing look at this sudden act of rejection. "Squidward...?" He whispered.

Before he could yell at him again, he heard Squilliam's laugh that silenced everything in the room. They all awaited for what he was about to say. "Well, well, Squiddy, looks like the yearbook committee's prediction was right. You were voted most likely to suck eggs...and just look where you are now!" He laughed even harder.

And everyone joined in with him. All pointing and laughing at him. Not at Spongebob. Him.

"Wow, what a fag!" He heard the tiny voice of Plankton from across the room.

As soon as he heard those words a flashback hit him in the face like a brick wall.

_Squidward with his long, flowing blond hair stands outside the band room during class. He is supposed to be meeting Squilliam here for one of their regular make-out sessions. Class ends in around 5 minutes, so he knew they wouldn't have long until everyone came out and saw them. He had made it his mission for people not to find out that he was gay. He knew that he was already unpopular enough. He didn't need to be bashed and beat up for homosexuality too. He was lucky that Squilliam wanted to keep it to themselves also. With his cunning personality he half-expected him to tell the whole school the day they began dating. But since then, the once-malicious octopus had become so sweet-tempered. Squilliam even suggested that every day they met here so they could have some alone time. He was surprised that they hadn't been caught yet. _

_He peered inside one of the classrooms quickly to check the time. 4 more minutes left. Where was he?_

_Then he heard sensual voice of his boyfriend from across the hall. "Ohhh, Squiddy!" He said rather loudly._

_He turned to see the well-dressed octopus lifting his ever-flowing unibrow seductively. He rushed over to meet him and gave him a slight glare. "Squilliam, you should come earlier if you're so intent on nobody finding out..." He whispered in case any teachers were to walk by._

_Squilliam scoffed and smirked widely. "You know, I don't want anybody finding out either, but you worry too much, Squiddy dear." He raised his unibrow and put his arms around Squidward's neck._

_Immediately all tension left his body as he wrapped his arms around the opposing octopus's neck. He smiled wryly. "I'm sorry... I just..." His eyes darted about as he tried to think of what to say. "I care about us, that's all." _

_Squilliam rolled his eyes. "And I care about my multimillion-dollar mansion, now kiss me you sexy beast!" He growled and thrust his lips forward at Squidward._

_Squidward loved it when he called him that. And that sexy kitty growl of his. He kissed him back just as hard, getting lost completely in the moment. Everything seemed to just disappear. It was just him and Squilliam, who was now pushing him back as he tried to contain his arousal. It had never been this amazing before. Sometimes they had been quick pecks on the cheek, or a few smooches, but never anything this intense. And every second of it made him want class to last forever. _

_Then that reminded him. Wasn't the bell supposed to..._

_The last thing he heard was the final ring of the bell that had been going on for the last 20 seconds. They had both literally drowned it out. And all he could hear now was shocked gasps and snickering. Vicious snickering. _

_In a panic he opened his eyes to see if Squilliam had noticed, and for a split second he saw the same surprised look on his boyfriend's face. Then he saw a glare. And the next thing he knew, he was pushed across the hall and into the wall, head spinning now from hitting solid concrete._

_Dizzily, he opened his eyes to make out Squilliam glaring at him from across the hall. Had he...pushed him? Students around them looked in complete shock and confusion. _

_Then, "What in Neptune's name do you think you're doing, Squidward?" Squilliam demanded from across the hall, coming to step closer. "Are you not just some poor sap, but a pervert too?"_

_Was he hearing things right? Was it from the collision? No. When he blinked to clear things up, he saw Squilliam standing above him, a hateful glare across his face. And he looked genuinely devastated. He was turning on him. His own boyfriend. "What the hell are you saying?" He demanded in a rage._

_Suddenly his speech was cut off by a tentacle blow to the face. As he held his throbbing nose, he looked up to see the same look of abhorrence. "Stop trying to bring me into your sick little fantasies. I'm not some pretty boy, like you!" _

_Squidward blinked. And he felt lump appear in his throat, and it wasn't because he just took a sharp blow to the face. "Squ-Squilliam...?" He murmured hoarsely. _

_"Don't even come near me anymore, you sick bastard!" He could see him working up a fake aggrieved look before sauntering out of the room, breathing heavily like he had just been emotionally scarred._

_Before he could even have time to think, he soon noticed all the students crowded around him. Some grinning maliciously and some glaring with hatred. He suddenly saw a few of them beginning to close in on him. He knew all too well what they were about to do, and he struggled to get himself up to run away, but one of the bigger fish grabbed onto the collar of his shirt and thrust him up against the wall. He growled at him menacingly and he tried to break free of the fish's tight grip, but before he could, he was thrown across the hall into another wall, this one knocking him almost unconscious._

_As he felt the world blacken around him, he felt a few of them kicking at his legs and face, and he could hear himself murmuring as loud as he could for them to stop. But they continued on, and as he felt his vision go hazy, he heard one last comment from one of them as the others walked to their class._

_"What a fucking fagget." _

_And it wasn't just any voice._

_It belonged to Squilliam Fancyson._

_His boyfriend._

His own boyfriend, calling him a fagget. Betrayal. Hurt. And his current boyfriend had done it to him. He had sided with his ex. And now the whole situation was happening all over again. The awful images finally leaving his mind, he looked around him frantically to see the faces of all of the fish staring directly at him as they laughed. Mr. Krabs, Plankton on his shoulder, looked completely and utterly disturbed. Sandy looked on consolingly. But one caught him in particular. Squilliam wasn't laughing with them.

Before he could take in that sight, he felt a tug on his suit. "S-Squidward...?" He heard the soft, delicate voice of Spongebob. He sounded like he was about to apologize.

As the voices and laughing mocked him, he felt the redness overtake his whole face. He wanted to run and get out of there. But what good would that do? All of Bikini Bottom had seen it, including his arch rival. And nothing he could do at this moment could fix it.

He felt another tug at his side, and it was suddenly as if that was his snap back to reality. All foggy thoughts and flashbacks drew away from his mind. Now all he could hear was the ear-piercing laughter. And he saw Spongebob looking at him from the side sadly. Narrowing his eyes, he glared at the sponge with absolute hatred. "Y-y-you..." Was all he could get out through clenched teeth.

The laughter finally getting to him, he felt himself snap. Eyes bloodshot, he turned to the crowd. "ALL OF YOU, SHUT UP!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

He then felt arms wrap around him. "Squidward, it's ok..." He heard Spongebob whisper.

In a rage, he recoiled his tentacle sharply, so much it knocked the poor sponge to the floor. He looked back up at him in surprise. "No, it's NOT OK!" He lashed out, eyes bulging pointing a tentacle in his face. "You took my one chance at impressing ANY of these people, and CRUSHED it the moment we stepped out of that limo! I told you how nervous I was, and I told you MONTHS ago that we weren't supposed to do this in public!" He leaned into the sponge's face further, death flaring through his eyes. "I don't know why I even took you with me... You are the most IDIOTIC, MORONIC, ASININE, THICK-HEADED, CAMPY, INSANE, AND DIM-WITTED PERSON I HAVE EVER MET! And if it weren't for my damn lust, WE WOULDN'T EVEN BE DATING!" He took a deep breath as he finished, and finally pointed a tentacle to the door. He flared his nostrils in anger, but also hurt. "Now why don't you just haul your yellow ass out of here, because I NEVER want to see your face ever AGAIN!"

If anyone could describe Spongebob's face in mere words, it would be: destroyed. Absolutely destroyed. His eyes were filled to the brim with tears and his bottom lip quivered as he tried to keep them contained. He whimpered as he tried to get words out. Looking at his boyfriend's harsh eyes, he knew what he had just said was all true. He couldn't take it. He ran over to Sandy and Patrick, who welcomed him with open arms as he sobbed into their dresses and suits. Squidward earned a few well-deserved glares from them.

Squidward took a deep breath and opened his eyes after his brief breakdown. He looked around him to see eyes glaring directly at him, and he heard the heartbroken sobs coming from Spongebob. He looked at this, annoyed. "Why are YOU the one crying, Spongebob? I'm the one who just got humiliated in front of hundreds of people!"

"Yeah. And you're also the biggest asshole I've ever met on the planet Earth!" A deep-voiced fish cried from next to him, glaring.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"That poor thing..."

"You bastard, what's your problem?"

"YOU STINK!"

Squidward felt himself grow red with anger. All the insults being thrown around at him. His boyfriend betraying him. He couldn't take it. "ALL RIGHT! SHUT UP, ALL OF YOU!" He screamed, the room falling completely silent. Even Spongebob turned to look at him in fear, and he shrived back into the arms of his best friends as his eyes filled with tears once again.

Squidward felt hurt and betrayal run through him, and he tried to hold back the tears that were coming. Angry, hot tears. "It's obvious that none of you need me here. If you did, I wouldn't be here, getting verbally abused by you simpletons, betrayed by my own boyfriend, and being one-upped constantly by my conceited high school rival!" He gave a death-glare to the octopus, who was surprisingly, looking on sympathetically. He wasn't glaring like the others. He wasn't laughing. He looked sorry for him. Squidward couldn't have noticed this if he tried, as he was burning up too much to care. "So I'll be going back to my lowly home where I can sit alone and wallow about how much I SUCK EGGS compared to you all!" He angrily began to walk towards the door. A few stray tears rolled down his face and he quickly wiped them away before anyone outside could notice. Before he left, he turned to the crowd one more time. "I'll see you all in Hell!" And more tears rolled down and he began to walk down the long red carpet.

Then he heard a familiar voice as he passed down the stage. "Squidward, wait." For once, it was soft and sympathetic.

"You of all people, want me to wait?" Squidward demanded in a hoarse voice, turning to face his old rival.

Squilliam's face immediately fell when he saw the tears running down his cheeks. "Squidward...are you...?" He looked absolutely shocked.

"Yes, Squilliam. I'm friggin' crying." Squidward spat, wiping away a few more that ceased to stop. "Are you happy? Isn't this what you wanted your whole life? To humiliate me completely in front of all of your friends?"

Squilliam actually looked genuinely ashamed hearing this. "Squidward... I didn't mean to-"

"I don't want to hear it!" Squidward shouted, knowing this was probably all a ruse to trick him into degrading himself further. "I'm leaving..." He turned to walk away.

"What about Spongebob?"

"You heard me. He obviously doesn't need me if he wanted to make a fool of me like that." Squidward muttered, continuing on his way.

Squilliam was about to reply to this, when all of a sudden, a little piece of plaster fell on his head. A few crackles came down with it, and he looked up to see a chandelier dangling by a thread just a few feet forward from him. The fixture dangled left and right, the wire holding it up breaking slowly. His eyes then traced the path of Squidward, who was making his way out. As the wire disintegrated more and more he quickly realized if Squidward walked any further, he was sure to be crushed. "Squi-" He was about to warn.

But a sudden snapping noise let him know what was about to happen. The glass chandelier came down. Hearing Squilliam's cry, Squidward turned around to reply haughtily. "What do you-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Seeing the fixture about to fall on him, he tried to run, but it came down right on top of him. His world faded to black.

All the people around him heard was his shortened cry, the sound of glass breaking, and the cracks of crushed bones.

And Squidward had stopped breathing, completely unaware of the octopus, sponge, and other fish at his side, trying to pick up his body from the mangled mess.


	2. Chapter 2

Squidward was floating. He was gracefully drifting in an endless white abyss that led to nowhere. His eyes weren't open, but he knew very well what was happening to him. He never thought something like death could be so peaceful. He always imagined it being slow and painful. But to him, it felt like angels were cradling him gently, carrying him slowly and softly up to the heavens above. He could hear them speaking to him as he floated higher and higher. He could feel a warm light penetrating through his closed lids.

As the voices got louder and louder, calling his name further, he began to notice a change in pitch in their voices. They were getting...lower? He had to be imagining it.

But no. The voices were definitely getting lower in pitch, sounding more and more demonic each time they spoke. He began to get frightened, and as much as his conscience told him to keep his eyes shut, he opened them anyway.

Yes, angels, beautiful as they were, were carrying him towards a eye-blinding light. But their faces were evil...smiling at him maniacally as they noticed his awakening. His eyes darted around him, trying to make some sense of the situation... Was he really dying? It was as if the moment his eyes snapped open, everything he had been feeling was gone. He was in a different world now. A world of realization. He tried to break free of the angels grasps, but they held him tight as they began to laugh in a foreboding echo.

"P-please...let me go...!" He cried as they rose higher. "I...I don't want to die yet! I have so much ahead of me! Please!" He begged, tears forming in his eyes at the thought of his life ending so abruptly.

They laughed harder, and suddenly he felt their comforting arms unravel from around his torso. Before he could say anything, he felt himself drop. He began to fall into the white abyss below him. He screamed as he fell at lightening speed, the voices and laughing mocking him as he did. He tried to look somewhere for something to land on, something that would save him. But nothing was there. He was in an endless vacuum.

Then an ear-deafening boom sounded around him, and the voices of the angels were immediately silenced. He heard an even deeper maniacal laugh from below him. He was suddenly suspended in mid-air, and he shrunk back as the laugh echoed all around him. He trembled, knowing that something was about to happen. "P-please...just let me go back..." He whispered, almost hoping someone would answer him.

That laugh sounded again, and he heard a loud erupting from below him. He saw the ground open up slowly. He then saw something red escape from the cracks... Then a huge glob of what looked like...lava...

Before he could even blink, a huge pool of lava had formed directly below him. It was so close, he could feel the heat begin to scald him, blisters rapidly forming on his body. As it flowed, he felt something grab him crushingly from behind him.

All he could see was a shadow from behind him. And what he could make out were horns and sharp teeth as it laughed. He shook violently with fear. He knew that he was a cynical person, but he never thought that Hell was ever in his future. He felt tears of fear trickle down his face. "LET ME GO...! PLEASE! I'LL DO ANYTHING!" He screamed at the figure that held him.

But he knew that begging would do nothing. And as he heard it laugh one more time, it held up its arm high, and threw him towards the lava pool. He screamed loudly, praying to himself that this was all a dream and that he wasn't about to die a painful death. And in his head, he quickly said his mental goodbyes to all the people in his life. Even Squilliam.

And then, just as he was about to touch the lava, he felt his eyes snap open frantically. He wasn't in the white abyss anymore. Looking around him, he noticed the scene looked all too familiar. He was in the theater. Alive and well. No chandeliers in sight. The only difference was that he was wearing his everyday brown shirt instead of the suit.

He happily picked himself up and whooped joyfully. "I'm...I'm...ALIVE!" he then remembered all of the people at the show. And what he had said to them. Especially Spongebob. "Spongebob!" In a cheerful way, he began to search for him to let them all know he was alive. He went to the backstage area where they had been conversing before. "S-Sponge..." But when he entered, he saw the room was dark. Nobody was there. It was completely empty. "Bob...?"

Fear building up inside him, he slowly made his way around the room. All of the chairs were stacked up, the buffet table was empty, and there was absolutely no sign of life. In fact it looked like nobody had entered the room in weeks. Maybe months.

To make sure, he peered back out into the open theater. No chairs filled the isles. The curtains were ominously shut. The only noise was the echoing suction-sound his tentacles made as he searched. What had happened? Did everybody go home? No, because the chandelier that came down on him wouldn't be hanging perfectly fine right in front of him now. This was just downright creepy.

Suddenly he heard a familiar sounding giggle coming from the backstage area. "Spongebob?" He turned back to see a strange glowing light coming from the corner of the room. Nervously, he made his way back into the room.

And what he saw took him completely off-guard. Spongebob was there, staring at him with a warm smile, wearing shiny white boots and a glow surrounded him. But at this point, Squidward didn't notice any of this. He was just ecstatic to see his boyfriend alive and well and that nothing had changed. "Spongebob!" He cried out happily, and he rushed over and wrapped his arms around the sponge tightly. "Oh, Spongebob...y-you wouldn't believe what just-" He then looked up to see a halo hovering directly above the sponge. He also had long, delicate angel wings protruding from his sides. He unwrapped his arms and shriveled away. The nightmare was continuing to haunt him. "S-S-Sponge...bob...?" He whispered hoarsely.

The being just smiled wryly. "You think I am Spongebob?" He said, having the same voice as the sponge of the norm. "I am not."

Squidward blinked for a moment, taking in the elegant figure in front of him. He chuckled nervously. "A-are you kidding?" He stood up and walked around to the back of him. "C'mon Spongebob, take off this stupid disguise." He grabbed the angel wings and yanked on them hard, but they refused to come off. He stepped away in bewilderment.

The figure recoiled sharply. It turned to face him with a slight glare on his face. "Do you mind? That hurts you know." He placed his hands on his hips.

"O-ok Spongebob, this isn't funny..." Squidward said, voice shaking. "I know I was kinda mean to you before but this is taking it too far..."

"'Kinda' is a bit of an understatement, Squidward." He said. "And I told you, I am not Spongebob." He said again, as if it was the most simple thing in the world.

"Then what the hell are you?" Squidward demanded, getting more and more freaked out.

"I am an angel in the form of Spongebob Squarepants." It said, smiling warmly. "I was sent here to give you a premonition."

Squidward refused to believe the sight in front of him. "Y-you're crazy, Squarepants!" He yelled, backing up slowly. "You're sick!" He began to run out of the room as fast as he could towards the door.

Suddenly a light blinded him and knocked him backward just as he was about to open the door. The angel floated gracefully above him. "You can't leave! Not until you see your premonition!" It spoke harshly.

Squidward blinked at the floating figure. "Y-you...you're really...an..." He felt himself grow lightheaded.

"Yes, I am an angel." It repeated, and it extended a hand. "Come with me."

Squidward inched away on the red carpet. "W-why? I'm not dying again, am I?" He spoke frantically.

"No, but if you don't come with me, it's possible you will." It said, keeping its arm extended.

Squidward stood up. "Wait...so I'm not actually in the theater? This is just..."

"A vision controlled by myself."

"Ok... So why are you showing me a premonition?"

"If you don't recall, right before you were crushed by that lighting fixture, you completely blew up at everyone in the backstage area."

Squidward flicked his eyes to the ground, slightly ashamed. Even though he now knew the figure in front of him was an angel, it still felt like it was Spongebob talking to him. And he couldn't feel more guilty if he tried. "Y-yes.. What about it?"

"And after that, you told them all they'd be better off without you, and that they didn't need you in any way. Do you remember that?"

"Yeah. And it couldn't be more true." He defended, the anger from earlier coming back to him. "They were all asking for it when they started laughing at me." He folded his arms.

"Have you ever once thought how they ACTUALLY would feel if you were gone?"

"No. And I don't plan on it."

"Just for a moment, try and imagine how they would feel."

Squidward rolled his eyes. "They would be ecstatic that an old, depressing cephalopod was out of their lives. In fact, I bet they're cheering right now, seeing my body a bloody, mangled mess..." He turned away from the angel. "And I don't need your 'supernatural' powers to tell me that."

The angel flew over so he was directly in front of his face. "If you come with me, you will see how wrong you are." It said softly.

"I've had to deal with those morons the majority of my life." Squidward stated bluntly. "I think I know how they feel about me. And it's my own fault anyway."

"You are very far from the truth. Please Squidward. I'll show you a few events...and if you do not believe me then...I'll let you return to your body." It extended a hand solemnly, a distressed look on its face.

"I told you-" Squidward was about to refuse again, but then he caught a glimpse of the angel's face. In the form of Spongebob, he found himself fooled for a few seconds. The look of sadness and despair on its face looked creepily similar to the real creature's face from before. And even though he was still pissed at all of them, for some reason he began to feel a rush of guilt go through him. How much he just wanted to go back and see them all ran through his mind. Sighing, he figured since this angel was real he could go with it for a while and see what happens. He had nothing to lose. '_Except for my sanity...'_ He thought to himself.

In defeat, he looked up at the spirit. "Fine. Whatever. Take me to the future, or whatever other cliched thing you're about to attempt." He held out a tentacle reluctantly.

It smiled warmly, taking his tentacle. "You've chosen wisely. You'll see."

"Yeah, yeah.." He rolled his eyes.

"Alright, hold on. We're currently entering the future." He grasped the octopus's tentacle firmly.

"As expected..." he muttered dryly.

Suddenly the angel raised its wings high, and a large glowing light began to form from its halo. The to of them began to rise into the air slowly, and the light became brighter. Not expecting this, Squidward grasped his hand tighter, expecting to fell the pull of gravity as they rose. But he was actually floating like the angel was. He slowly let go of its arm, and sure enough he hovered as gracefully as the spirit. The light around its halo then began to become blinding, and it completely wiped out the scenery of the theater. Squidward had to close his eyes to protect himself from the light.

Slowly it began to dissolve. He opened his eyes slowly to see that they were now outside of a church-like building. He noticed he was now on the ground. Looking around, It didn't take long for him to figure out where they were. "The Bikini Bottom Funeral Home? What are we doing here?" He turned to the angel in question.

"As I said before, I'm showing you what life in this town would be like without you here..." It looked solemnly at the building as the ringing of church bells sounded. "So..."

Squidward swallowed hard as he paled. "Y-you mean...I'm..._dead?_" He cried out, looking at the spirit frantically.

"If you didn't survive the impact of the light, then yes. This would be your future." It said. "This is only a vision, however. None of it is real, yet."

"So...this is my funeral..." He whispered, taking the time to absorb the situation. "Dear Neptune...no..."

The spirit snapped its fingers quickly, and they were suddenly transported to a green valley. Many figures were gathered around a certain spot, dressed in black suits and dresses. Some held tissues to their faces. Looking closer, he could see them all by a small gravestone. A few fish walked over to the stone to set down flowers and other items.

Squidward watched in pure horror, just imagining the inscription on the gravestone. He felt a light tap on his shoulder. "Get closer if you wish to see more." The spirit told him.

And he did without hesitation. He saw all the shocked faces, covered with tears. Some of them his relatives, from his closest to ones he barely interacted with. All of them however, had the same pained expressions on their faces. He could also make out Mr. Krabs in the way back, Sandy standing closer to the grave beside Patrick, who held one of her paws tightly in his grasp. Both were choking back sobs. He was stunned to see even Squilvia stepping up to put a huge bunch of daises on the dirt beside the stone. But then he noticed the one he was looking for the most. His sobs drowning out those of all the others. The spongy figure, arms draped around the dusty stone. He bawled, punching his fists against the rock, sometimes yelling out ineligible sounds that were heartbreaking to the octopus's ears.

Then he saw another familiar face. Squilliam came up from behind the sponge, holding something in his tentacles. He rubbed his back soothingly as he tried to get his attention. "Spongebob?" He finally whispered.

Breathing heavily, Spongebob tried to speak, but was cut off by abrupt sobs that refused to let up. The sound was becoming too devastating for Squidward to listen to. He thought he had seen Spongebob at his worst plenty of times, but he was wrong. This was just unbearable. He raced over to Spongebob's side. "Spongebob, you don't have to cry! I'm right here!" He pointed at himself frantically, but he gained no response. "I'm not dead!"

"They cannot see us. We are invisible to them." The angel said, coming up from behind him.

Before he could respond, Squilliam began to speak again. "You don't have to look up." Squilliam spoke softly. "But I found it." And to Squidward's surprise, he lifted up his old clarinet, holding it in front of the sponge's face.

Upon hearing this, Spongebob lifted his head. His eyes were positively soaked, along with his entire body(even his suit) and his eyes were as red as his cheeks from sobbing so much. "R-really?" He looked stunned.

"Yeah, I spent all day yesterday picking through the rubble... But I found it..." He handed it to Spongebob.

Spongebob held it to his body tightly, as if it were the only thing he had left of Squidward. "I thought that they tore everything down...?" he whispered.

"T-tore what down?" Squidward asked, slightly nervous. "What's he talking about?"

"Everything except for the furniture. They left all of that where his house used to be." Squilliam said.

"...M-my house was torn down?" Squidward demanded in horror.

"Yes, because after you were killed, Squilliam mo-"

But the angel was cut off by Spongebob, whose eyes began to well up and he hugged the instrument to his body closer. "S-Squidward...w-why did you have t-t-t-" He dropped the clarinet and sobbed brokenheartedly on the grass. "OH, SQUIDWARD WHYYYYYYY?" He screamed so loud, every one turned to see if he was all right.

"Spongebob..." Squidward muttered to himself sadly. Seeing his boyfriend cry like this was tearing him apart inside.

"Spongy-kins..." Squilliam knelt down to the ground and stroked his back soothingly. Tears began to well up in his eyes as well.

Squidward glared slightly, walking over to stand over Squilliam. "Hey, nobody can call him spongy-kins but me!" He said defensively as he watched the exchange happen below him.

"I...I..." Spongebob tried to speak, taking a moment to sniffle and gather himself. "I d-d-didn't even get to say goodbye to him... He acted like he hated me... He said he never wanted to see me again...like he wanted me...dead..." His eyes welled up again, and he suddenly pressed his face into Squilliam's black robe, sobbing loudly.

Squilliam took him in his arms and rubbed his back further, tears falling down his face as well.

Squidward blinked, absolute hatred for himself overcoming him. He had acted like such a jackass for no other reason other than being embarrassed. And now Spongebob was stuck thinking that he despised him back at the theater. He probably thought he actually wanted him...dead... What was wrong with him, upsetting his own boyfriend to the point he was sobbing beyond belief? And even now, in a fake vision(that would only happen if he died) he would be better off without him, not having to deal with the insults that he had thrown towards him in the past and present. "See... I told you they don't need me..." Squidward muttered. "He wouldn't be stuck thinking that..." He swallowed a slight lump in his throat. "...that his own boyfriend wants him dead..." He looked towards the ground shamefully, trying to block out Spongebob's crying.

"But can you not see how grieved all these people are?" The angel asked, gesturing towards all the people shedding tears.

"S-so what...?" He said bitterly, watching as Spongebob and Squilliam embraced. "People always cry at funerals..."

"Maybe I should show you something else." The angel said, and it extended its arm again.

Looking back once again at the scene in front of him, he limply held out his tentacle, and they rose into the air again. The light blinded them once again, before fading to reveal another familiar setting. Conch Street. Him and Spongebob's home.

Except one thing was missing. His house. Nothing was left except for some flowers scattered about that used to belong to his garden. Most were dead, hanging limply with the current. He stared in shock at the slight pieces of rubble that were laying in the sand. He glared hatefully. "Now, do you think anybody would care about me if they ripped my house down?" He demanded, gesturing towards the empty sand.

"Perhaps not. But you will see why soon enough." It pointed to the pineapple next door. "Come inside."

Squidward sighed, not seeing why that answer had to be put to rest. He reluctantly made his way inside the house, opening the door slowly, not expecting what to see. Inside he saw, all the lights were turned off, something that Spongebob never did. He always wanted to keep the world bright. This was so unlike him. He also saw many books and other items scattered around the floor, as if they haven't been picked up in weeks. Stepping in more, he walked into the kitchen. Bags of barnacle chips lay on the floor and counters, and dishes in the sink were covered with grime. The t.v. in the room next to him was turned on, static filling the screen. A sense of foreboding came over him.

Then he heard a voice coming from upstairs. "I don't know..."

"C'mon... You know you'll like it..." Said another in an overly seductive tone.

"It just doesn't feel right, Patrick..."

Squidward's eyes widened at this. Despite how much he tried to make it seem like he didn't care before, he felt himself grow very wary. He quickly rushed up the stairs and made his way to where he assumed the voices were coming from. Then he saw two figures in the dark as he passed Spongebob's room.

He quickly peered his head inside to find Patrick and Spongebob sitting on the same bed, Patrick's hand entwined with Spongebob's...


	3. Chapter 3

"No Patrick...I can't..." Spongebob murmured quietly to his best friend next to him, and he turned away so he wasn't facing the starfish.

"Yes, you can!" Patrick cried, and he grabbed the sponge's scrawny arms in his and stared at him intensely. "We both know it's true..."

"Maybe you think it is, but not for me." Spongebob countered, getting more annoyed.

Watching from the doorway, Squidward blinked in confusion. "What in Neptune's name are they talking about?" He demanded to the angel, who was hovering lightly above him.

"Keep watching, and you'll find out." Was its only response, pointing into the room.

"Spongebob, we can't just hide feelings like this..." Patrick said. "You know that you want to."

"Patrick! Just stop, ok?" Spongebob suddenly lashed out, glaring at the star, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "J-just leave!"

"But Spongebob, I love you!" Patrick yelled back, and he clenched Spongebob's hands in his tighter. "And I know you love me too!"

Squidward's jaw dropped to the floor. And he couldn't find the strength to pick it back up. All he could do was murmur incessantly, trying to find the right words.

"I _don't, _Patrick!" Spongebob cried, yanking his hands away from him and jumping off the bed to escape his grasp. "I'm sorry that you do, but...I think of you as my best friend, and that's ALL!"

Patrick glared. "Yes, you do! Ever since we met, I can tell that you love me back." He jumped from the bed to get closer to him. "Like when we had that baby scallop[ and we slept in the same bed together?"

"You were below my mattress, that doesn't count!" Spongebob said, a bead of sweat trickling down his forehead, trying to hide something.

"No, remember the night after that? I got scared of the dark from under there, and I asked if I could sleep up there with you, and you said yes." Patrick said, smirking.

Spongebob flushed a bright red. "Patrick please stop..." He whispered.

"And then we talked about junior, or whatever his name was..." Patrick continued, his smile getting wider. "And then, you told me how much you appreciated my help and how if it weren't for me we wouldn't have kept the scallop alive."

"Patrick, please..."

"And then, I told you how much help you were and how much fun it was pretending to be a couple." Patrick grew red himself. "And then you asked me..."

"Just stop it! Please don't say it!" Spongebob begged.

"You asked me if you wanted it to be real. If I wanted to actually be a couple. And then I said yes right after, because it was obvious that we both loved each other. And then you leaned over and we made out for at least a solid hour!" Patrick was grinning widely, pleasured by the sponge's obvious embarrassment and horror. "And we did that every night for the next two weeks we had junior. And you told me you loved me every night-"

"PATRICK!" Spongebob cried out in agony, his pleading eyes now sopping wet with tears. "Yes, I admit that happened...but after that I realized that it would be better if we were just best friends because I thought it was too...awkward."

"Well I didn't think it was too awkward." Patrick muttered, folding his arms. "And I don't think you did either. Especially that night when we-"

"But this was before I realized I loved Squidward!" Spongebob cried, cutting him off again. "You and me...we're just friends, Patrick! And that's how it should stay!"

"Squidward's DEAD. He's dead, Spongebob!" Patrick yelled, getting more aggravated. "When are you going to get that through your head?"

Spongebob's eyes welled up, and tears poured out onto the floor. "I...I..."

Patrick grabbed his hands and smiled at him warmly. "You need to move on, Spongebob. And I can help you..." He leaned in for a kiss.

Squidward grew red with fury. "What does that bastard think he's doing?" He demanded with rage, clenching his fists. He was tempted to go in and stop him, but then he remembered they could not be seen. This just made him more angry.

Spongebob pushed him off. "N-no...!" He cried, eyes blurry from tears.

Patrick just moved in again for more, but Spongebob kept pushing him off with more force each time. Finally he lashed out, "PATRICK, STOP!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

"What's your problem?"

"DON'T YOU GET IT...?" Spongebob yelled, dropping to the floor in a fit of sobs. "I...I still love Squidward...!" And he broke down.

Squidward blinked in shock from behind the door. "D-did he just...say..." He murmured in disbelief.

Patrick glared, lifting his head from the ground. "Dammit Spongebob, he's dead! How can you still love him if he's dead?" He demanded.

"B-because...he was my boyfriend and...if that light hadn't fallen on him..." He couldn't even finish. "If I hadn't kissed him in front of all of those people, he'd still be alive...!"

"Damn right..." Squidward muttered, nodding at this in agreement. If only he had apologized about it sooner.

The angel glared at Squidward in utter disbelief. He was still being so bitter even after seeing for himself how much Spongebob still loved him. It was unbelievable to it.

Seeing Spongebob so torn up, Patrick's eyes softened. He sat down next to him as he sobbed. "But don't you remember what he said about you? He said he never wanted to see you again... He acted like he wanted you dead."

Spongebob lifted his head slightly and sniffled. "Y-yeah, but-"

"And since when did he actually care about you like that?" Patrick questioned. "Before he absolutely hated me and you, and he told us he wanted us to go die in a fiery pit once."

"I know, but-"

"In fact, I bet he only dated you because..."

"Because why?" Spongebob sat up, looking scared of what the answer would be.

"I think he only dated you just so he could impress Squilliam." Patrick said.

Squidward glared with fury. "WHAT? That's not true at all you fat idiot! I love Spongebob for who is is!"

"So you DO love him?" The angel asked from behind him.

"Of course I love him." Squidward answered plainly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the sea. "I've always loved him."

"When the last time you actually said that to him?" The angel challenged.

"Well that's easy. It was...um..." Squidward completely drew a blank. He couldn't even remember. Spongebob said it to him all the time, but he could never recall returning it. A wave of guilt came over him. His bitterness was slowly beginning to fade.

"Not often, hmm?"

"N-no..." Squidward admitted quietly, hanging his head low, and he turned back to watch the scene play out in agony. "Not at all..."

Spongebob had the same opinion as Squidward on the subject, glaring at Patrick hatefully. "That's not true! He loved just as much as I loved him!"

"How many times did he mention Squilliam during the time you dated?" Patrick countered.

Squidward felt himself grow wary at this. He knew he mentioned Squilliam A LOT out of his own jealousy. This was not going to help his cause at all.

Spongebob looked at the ground as he thought. Tears suddenly dripped down his cheeks. "Often... Almost all the time..." He whispered.

"Exactly. And dating you would only boost Squidward's confidence." Patrick said.

Spongebob sniffled and shook his head. "Oh, Patrick... Y-you're...you're right..." He blinked back more tears.

"NO! No, no, no, no!" Squidward cried, running into the room to glare at Spongebob, who didn't know of his existence. "He is NOT right! He is so far from right it's-"

"I'm always right." Patrick cut him off, and he patted Spongebob's back soothingly. "He never loved you like I did..."

Spongebob shook his head again. "Pat...I...I just can't do it..." He whispered.

"What?"

"I don't love you like that... Even if Squidward was a dirty liar..." He said.

"Which I'm not!" Squidward yelled from behind him, trying desperately for him to notice him.

"Spongebob, c'mon..." He put his arm around him. "You don't have Squidward anymore... And you have someone you love, right here..."

Spongebob nodded. "I know... You love me as a friend..."

"No, Spongebob, not just as a friend." He leaned in closer.

"Would you get the hell away from my boyfriend?" Squidward demanded, trying to pry Patrick off, but to no avail. He was just a transparent being.

"Well that's how I feel." Spongebob said, getting up, and walking over to his bedside table. He stared intently at a dusty clarinet that lay there. "Even if he was like that...I just can't... I just want to be best friends..."

Patrick stood up slowly as he looked at his depressed friend. He knew that no matter what he tried, he would never persuade him. He nodded slowly. "Fine... If that's what you want..." He blinked back tears as he turned to leave. "If you don't want to be my boyfriend...then I don't want you in my life at all..."

"Patrick..."

"I can't just be best friends with you, Spongebob..." He murmured, opening the door that led downstairs. "I need you..." He stuttered on the last part, as tears dripped down his face. "But if you want to break my heart again...fine... Just don't expect to see me any time soon..."

Spongebob felt his heart tear apart at this. "Patrick wait-" But the door slammed before he could get to him. He suddenly heard a loud noise coming from outside. Patrick was running towards his house as fast as he could, bawling uncontrollably as he went. Eyes filling with tears as he watched his now ex-best friend wallow, he realized now that they could never go back. They could never enjoy the times they shared before. Blowing bubbles and jellyfishing... All was gone... And it was all his fault. More tears flowed down his face.

Squidward looked at the destroyed expression on Spongebob's face as he clung to the window like a security blanket. His boyfriend was convinced he was a dirty liar. He may be cynical, but he would never stoop to such a low like Patrick described.

His eyes then caught the object Spongebob had been looking at before on his bedside table. He walked over to see his old clarinet that he had previously seen at the cemetery at his funeral. He had kept it all this time...

Suddenly he felt a touch on his shoulder. The angel was floating above him. "Are you ready to see another scene?"

"As long as it's not as depressing as this one..." Squidward whispered, guilt overcoming him.

Once again the angel and him rose into the air, but this time all it did was snap its fingers slightly. The next thing Squidward knew, they were back outside Spongebob's house. Looking around, he saw no difference. He looked at the spirit in confusion. "W-why is this no different than the last scene?"

"Look in front of you." It said, pointing. "Remember when you asked why your house was torn down?"

"Yes. Why?" And he turned back, to see his Easter Island Head sitting there plainly. But looking up further, he noticed about 7 other stories piled right on top of it, a tower, and a rooftop terrace. The arrangement seemed frighteningly familiar. "Wh-wha...?" Getting past this, he glared and walked up to the house to find that whoever built this had ruined his flower garden. Or what was left of it from before. "Ok, who's the barnaclehead who stole my home?" He demanded.

As if fate was answering his question, he suddenly noticed a huge, fancy white boatmobile coming down the street. A moving truck was following close behind. Squidward blinked. "Um, just how far ahead is this since my death?" He asked.

"About half a year. Why do you ask?"

Before he could respond, the car pulled up into the driveway that now sat next to the new house. Peering into the driver's seat, Squidward couldn't wait to see what moron he would have a bone to pick with later for stealing his home.

Suddenly the door opened. And coming out of the vehicle, was none other than the esteemed Squilliam Fancyson. And it was the second time Squidward's jaw dropped straight to the ground. Dressed in his usual maroon robe, it seemed almost instantly he was surrounded by cameras and t.v. reporters. As if his mere presence was enough to attract the media. He rarely came to such a ghost town such as Bikini Bottom. He always told Squidward he was a poor sap for living there.

Stepping out of the car with a smug grin, Squilliam flung his hands in the air, as if embracing all of the attention he was attracting. "Well hel-looo-ooooo, peasants!" He shouted, somehow managing to make a simple word such as hello stretch out into three syllables.

A roar of applause came over the crowd that seemed to stretch for miles. Frozen in place, Squidward finally turned around to glare at the angel hatefully. Stuttering hopelessly, he limply raised a tentacle in Squilliam's direction. "H-he...h-h-heee... H-him... T-that-that that isn't... it isn't... _HIM?" _He demanded in a loud scream. "Out of all the people who could POSSIBLY take my house, it had to be..._HIM?" _ His brow furrowed as he watched the scene unfold.

The first reporter to come ask him a question was Nicolas Withers, the host for Squidward's favorite show, "House Fancy". He smiled in that overly-campy way that always annoyed him as he held up the microphone to Squilliam. "So Mr. Fancyson, it's nice to see you again outside of 'House Fancy'! What made you, the artistic connoisseur that you are, decide to move to such a dingy place like Bikini Bottom?" He couldn't help but notice the suggestive looks the fish was giving Squilliam.

Squilliam scoffed as he wiggled his unibrow as he always did when his ego was satisfied. "Well Nicky dear, I must say I'm glad to see you also, but when am I NOT getting swarmed by reporters these days?" This earned some laughter from the fish that had gathered, and earned a well-deserved sulk from Squidward. "And as for your other question, I agree with you that this IS a terrible town to live in. Everyone here practically FEEDS off of that repulsive dumpster called the Krusty Krab. It's disgusting." He waved a tentacle as he gagged. "But I was getting quite tired of my life in Bottoms Up, what with all of the other rich snobs bragging about their wealth all the time. I thought it would be nice to move to a place where I could brag to LOW-LIVES, instead of constantly being matched up to the same saps every day." He folded his arms as the crowd discussed this intently.

Squidward scoffed. "Yeah, it must be SO hard to live in a life like that. You just wait, he'll be here one day and move back out." He folded his arms. "How dare he take my frigging house..."

"Well that's definitely a logical reason.." Nicolas pondered. "You seem to be brightening up this town already with your amazing-as-always Easter Island Mansion." He gestured to the building behind them, and the audience swarmed to it like colonies of bees to snap photos.

"Of course I am! That's just how amazing I am, Nicky darling!" He laughed as he watched his fanclub swoon over his house.

Squidward rolled his eyes. "He is so full of himself it's sickening..." He muttered. Then he turned to the angel with dry eyes. "How exactly is this proving that the world cares about me? All he's doing is stealing my-"

"Just watch."

Nicolas turned back to face Squilliam. "So, why don't you tell us a little bit about-"

"Squilliam?" Suddenly a voice from up above was heard, and the crowd turned to face a spongy figure that poked his head out of his upstairs window. He had heard of the commotion and had decided to see who it was.

Nicolas' eyes flicked from Squilliam to Spongebob. "Who's that?"

Squilliam smiled warmly and waved a tentacle. "Spongy-kins! I didn't know you lived here!" He called out. Squidward glared at his rival for using the nickname he himself used occasionally.

"Who is Spongy-kins?" Nicolas was confused beyond belief.

"One second, Nicolas." He said, and he left his front yard to stand below Spongebob's window. "Spongebob, come outside and greet everybody!"

Looking at the crowd that was now filming and staring up at him, Spongebob blushed with embarrassment. "Hehe...um...o-ok..." And his face disappeared from the window, and meeting the silence was the sound of his footsteps coming down the stairs. The door opened, and the sponge came over to greet the octopus.

"Spongy, darling!" Squilliam cried, taking him in his arms tightly. "It's been too long. Two months, I think?"

"Yeah, I think." Spongebob replied, returning the hug. "I didn't know that you were-"

"Excuse me, Mr. Fancyson?" Nicolas cut him off abruptly. "Do you think maybe we could finish the interview?"

Squilliam glared somewhat. "Come by tomorrow.. I need time to settle in here anyway." He let go of Spongebob and set him on the ground. "And spend some time with my Spongy friend."

Squidward honestly couldn't believe that Squilliam had refused a t.v. interview. Usually he thrived on it. All of the reporters and fish seemed disappointed as they packed up their equipment and drove away. The only people that stayed were some bystanders that weren't fond of taking orders, and the fish in the moving van that were now unloading Squilliam's things.

Squilliam smiled as he turned around to get back to their conversation. "Damn paparazzi... Sometimes it gets annoying as hell.." He rolled his eyes. "Can't say I don't ADORE it on the inside, though!"

"W-wow Squilliam, I didn't know YOU were the one moving here!" Spongebob said, looking quite happy and somewhat relieved. "To be honest when I found out that someone else was moving in I got kinda..." He bit his lip, trying to suppress his lingering feelings of sorrow.

"Well you should have known anyway, I mean who else in the sea could come up with this fabulous architectural design?" He gestured to his house.

"Heh, I thought whoever it was just really liked the old design." He chuckled slightly, but it was hoarse and sounded quite forced. Normally in a situation like that, his dolphiny laugh would make an appearance. But it just showed how much the event had affected him on the inside.

"So how have you been? Dealing with...you know." Squilliam asked, placing his words together delicately.

"Um...pretty bad..." He murmured, looking down at the sand. "Horribly, really..."

"Me too."

Spongebob looked shocked, as did Squidward in the background. "You? Really?"

"Well he was my boyfr-" He stopped himself just in time, blushing brightly. "Err...I mean my friend in high school. And I would be lying if I said I honestly hated him... I wish I had had the time to...apologize..." He looked to the ground shamefully.

Squidward couldn't believe his eyes. Squilliam? Wanting to apologize to him?

Spongebob didn't respond to this. He just looked at the ground with a dead expression. Fr a while it was silent until he finally said something to keep conversation going, "So...did you really move here because of all the rich snobs you live around?" He had been listening to the interview all along.

Squilliam sighed, looking a bit embarrassed. "No. I... When I heard that Squiddy's house was getting torn down and was for sale..." He looked at the movers bringing the items into his house solemnly. "I...I honestly couldn't stand the thought of some idiot moving in place of him.. They would just screw the place up.. And...I felt guilty. If it weren't for that comment I made that got everyone laughing, maybe he wouldn't have...you know..." His eyes welled up slightly, but he quickly wiped them away before Spongebob could notice. "So, at least his house is going to someone he knew."

Squidward shook his head in disbelief at what he just heard. He was honestly touched to hear that Squilliam actually _did _care about him. Despite all he did to him, he actually cared enough to do something like that for him. He could feel the angel's victorious gaze smiling from above him, and he flushed with embarrassment.

"Squilliam..." Spongebob murmured, and he looked touched also, as he smiled warmly at the octopus. "T-that's...so sweet..."

"Yeah, I guess.. I only wanted to make up for what I've done to him." He looked at him for a moment. "Do you still have his clarinet?"

"It's been up in my room ever since the funeral." Spongebob replied. "Why, do you want to...see it?"

"Yeah." Was all he said, before he led himself to Spongebob's pineapple and they both went inside. Squidward and the angel followed along with them up to Spongebob's room.

Spongebob grabbed the clarinet gently from the nightstand and blew the dust that sat on it. The lights in the room were still dark, as were the others around the house. "I...haven't played it since.. I always used to try when he played me some of his songs." He said, giggling slightly. "I always played better than him..."

Squidward couldn't help but laugh at that, recalling one night they had shared after going out to eat one night.

_Squidward cleared his throat loudly before picking up his clarinet and beginning to play some sour notes in his living room. Spongebob was upstairs putting on his p.j's and he was happy to get some peace so he could practice for once. He had planned a 'concert' type thing at the Rec Center for next Friday, and he knew he had to make sure his playing was absolutely amazing. _

_Hearing this, Spongebob gasped from the stairs, now dressed in blue flannel-feetie pajamas. He ran down the stairs and looked at Squidward in awe, eyes sparkling. "Wow, Squidward, you play really good!" He cried. _

_Squidward stopped for a moment to bask in this gloating moment. "Well of course, I DID take lessons for 14 years. It's only natural that you would like it." He smiled._

_Spongebob clapped quietly. "I love it.. It's really beautiful!" He mused. "Do you think I could try?"_

_Squidward did a double-take. "A-At what? Playing...my clarinet?" He asked, almost in disbelief._

_"Yeah! I want to learn to play like you!" _

_Squidward stifled a giggle. "Ok Squarepants, you can try." He handed him the instrument and pointed to the notes on the sheet of paper. "Play this song here." He reclined in the chair and folded his arms while smirking. This should be good._

_Spongebob smiled. "Ok!" And he looked at the notes on the paper and immediately began playing in such a wonderfully melodic tone, Squidward was taken completely aback. As he continued playing the song perfectly, he suddenly stopped when he saw Squidward's stunned expression. "What? Was that bad?"_

_"N-no...it was...perfect, actually..." Squidward murmured, completely shocked. _

_"Ooh, good! I thought that my 12 years of music lessons would pay off one day!" And he continued to play the song in perfect tempo._

_Squidward shook his head. "Wow. Even YOU are better at playing the clarinet than I am..." He muttered._

_Spongebob stopped for a moment. "Are you kidding? I could never play like you!" He handed him his clarinet back. "All the wrong notes you put in make it sound more original!" _

_Squidward rolled his eyes at a comment that would have offended them had they not been dating. "Whatever..." He set his clarinet down on the couch, slightly sad. _

_"Say, what's the name of this song?" Spongebob wondered, taking a look at the sheet of music. "I've never heard it before."_

_Squidward sat up in shock. Quickly he tried to remove the sheet of music from Spongebob's grasp. "Spongebob, no! You can't look at that!" But he was too late._

_"Hmm...it's called, "Warm Smile"..." He continued to look at the paper. "'His lovely red freckles, his exuberant blue eyes that shimmer with the morning sun, his warm smile that greets me every day, getting me up from my depressed sleep'..." He read the lyrics, his eyes shining with awe. "I've definitely never heard of this song... I wonder who wrote it, because the lyrics are beautiful!" Then his eyes caught the scribbled writing at the bottom of the page, signed rather messily._

_"Gee, I sure don't know." Squidward said quickly, and then extended a tentacle. "Can I have those back now?" His eyes were somewhat desperate._

_But Spongebob had already seen the signature. And his eyes were shining with gratitude and awe as he stared at the lyrics. "Squidward...wow..." He murmured, a smile beginning to form on his lips._

_"I...I wrote it last night, it's really nothing special..." Squidward tried to cover, the blush spreading like a fire across his pale blue face._

_"But the date here says February 25th of last year... That's before we even started dating!" Spongebob said, looking through the others pages of the continued lyrics. Finally he looked up to stare at the octopus. "Squidward, I didn't know you...liked me that much..." He said, smiling gratefully._

_Squidward looked down to hide his blush. "S-so, I wrote a few songs dedicated to you..." He murmured._

_"You wrote more?" Spongebob demanded, and before he could be stopped he began to flip through the music sheets to see where they were._

_Squidward now had to cover his head in his tentacles. He couldn't take the embarrassment. "Spongebob, please..." Suddenly he felt his tentacles being pryed away from his face, and Spongebob was now sitting on his lap, holding the music sheets in his hands, eyes shining brightly. "W-what?"_

_"Squidward, I can't believe you wrote these...for me...!" He said happily. "That's so sweet! And these lyrics are so pretty..." _

_"Y-yeah, I guess."_

_"Are you embarrassed or something?" Spongebob asked, looking at his face. "You shouldn't be, because these are...beautiful..." His eyes glowed with passion. "And I can't believe they were written for MEEEE!" He cried out singsongy._

_"Well, I-OOOF!" He was about to speak before Spongebob wrapped his arms around his neck and snuggled into his lap like a baby would. He sighed as he blushed even harder, his secret being exposed. He realized that since they were dating he may as well just try to be comfortable with the situation and ask him what he really wanted to know. "You...um...really liked them?"_

_"YES!" He immediately cried out, looking up from his chest. "Nobody's ever done anything like that for me! I can't believe you would write songs about me..." He snuggled deeper into his chest._

_"Well...erm...I meant what I put in there..." He said quickly, trying to keep the fluffiness to a minimum. "And...all the songs I would play late at night...were those..." _

_"Awww..." Spongebob cooed, and he gave him a light kiss on his cheek. "Thank you..."_

_"F-for what?"_

_"Being the greatest boyfriend ever..." He whispered, staring up at him with those bright blue eyes that always got him mesmerized. _

_Squidward actually found himself getting sucked into the moment. "Aww, Spongebob..." He murmured, and he rubbed Spongebob's back as he sat in his lap. "You...you are too..." _

_After sitting in the embrace for a bit, Spongebob poked Squidward's nose. He pulled away for a moment. "So what do you think of my feetie pajamas I got today?" He raised his eyebrows seductively._

_Squidward took in the sight for a moment. "Why do you have to be so damn adorable..." He muttered as he stared at the outfit. _

_Spongebob grinned. "I was born that way." _

_"You sure were..." And he leaned forward and kissed him on the lips, ready for another night of a full make-out session._

Thinking of this made Squidward realize that if he died, all of those precious memories would be lost. Everything. All the moments they shared, good and bad. All of the past flashbacks, and how good Spongebob had been to him made him see how out of line he was at the concert. He was trying to be a good boyfriend, and he should have just gone along with it, and not let the bastards humiliate him. He should have defended himself and Spongebob. He shouldn't have acted like such a dick... Now Spongebob thought he wanted him dead. And he knew now he had to fix that. He wasn't about to let the future Spongebob be a depressed lump of his former self. He now began to see how wrong he was before, about Spongebob not caring about him. Or Squilliam for that matter. He now saw it didn't matter if the majority of people didn't like him. He just wanted the most precious person to him in his life to love him. He wanted to tell him he loved him, no matter how embarrassing it may be. He needed to know how much he cared about him, despite all of the horrible things he had said to him before.

The angel beside him poked his side, and smiled at him warmly. "I read your mind. You have seen your errors, haven't you?"

He actually felt himself get tear-eyed. "Yes..." He turned to the angel and got down on his knees. "Please angel...I'm begging you, please take me back to see him... I need to..." He blinked back tears and smiled. "I need to tell him I love him..."

The angel smiled. "I am proud of you, Squidward. But, there is one more thing you need to see." He pointed to the scene playing in front of them.

"And he told me that I was the greatest boyfriend he ever had too..." Spongebob fished, caressing the clarinet in his arms fondly, and Squidward realized he had just told the same story to Squilliam. The sponge's eyes welled up. "Squilliam...I...I would give anything in the world...to have him back..."

Squilliam watched the tears roll down Spongebob's face and he found himself get teary-eyed as well. "I...I would too... Even my mansion...or my money...even my unibrow statue made of gilded doorknobs..." A few tears rolled down his own face.

"Patrick told me a few months ago that he didn't care about me...but...I'll never believe that..." Spongebob whispered quietly, almost inaudible. "I know he loved me as much as I did... And that he never slept with me just to make you jealous."

"Wait. What?" Squilliam looked quite disturbed.

"Nothing..." He muttered quickly, before pressing his face into Squilliam's robe and sobbing silently. They sounded more like wheezes, because of how often he cried. Squilliam took him in his arms and they sat on his bed together, mourning the loss of their dear friend in each others arms.

Squidward found himself get teary-eyed. He couldn't believe himself for ever doubting them. Squilliam maybe, but he mentally slapped himself in the face for ever doubting Spongebob's feelings for him. He turned to the angel, tears falling down his face. "Can I please go back now? To Spongebob?"

The angel smiled. "Yes, Squidward." And it grabbed his tentacle one last time and lifted him in the air, and in a flash of light, they were transported away from the dark setting.

Squidward opened his eyes to see himself and the angel floating in the air. And directly below them was a mess of glass and blood. He could see some stray tentacles poking out from underneath a chandelier. "T-that's me...?" He whispered. He could also see a crowd of fish gathered around the crash. But what he noticed most was the two familiar people that dug frantically through mess to find his body. Spongebob and Squilliam. He could hear their desperate calls of his name, and they finally cleared the glass to reveal his mangled body. Spongebob cried out and threw himself on top of him, and Squilliam burst into tears on the floor.

"Yes, that's you." It answered, turning to him. "Are you ready to go back?"

He turned to it desperately. "Yes. Yes, I'd give anything to be down there with them..." He watched as cries of "He's dead!" rang out through the theater.

"Ok, I will transport you there directly." The angel said. "I'm happy that I could get through to you, Squidward..."

Squidward nodded gratefully. "Me too... Thank you, so much..." He never thought he would be so grateful to anyone in his life.

The spirit just nodded as if smiled warmly. It floated over to him, and touched his head lightly with its soft, gentle hands. A light began to emate from its halo, brighter than any of the past lights he had seen. Suddenly he was lost in a white abyss, and he could no longer see anything around him. The last thing he heard was the angel's voice. "Take this lesson into heart...and use it well...Squidward..." And the light faded as quickly as it came.

Eyes closed, Squidward could feel a stabbing pain all around his body. Blood trickled down his legs and face from the glass. He could also feel a numbing feeling in his legs. He knew what this meant, though. He was back. He groaned slightly as he struggled to open his eyes, which had also been impaled greatly. But what he saw in front of him was two shocked faces staring down at him. He smiled as best he could, seeing the circumstances. And he heard a voice that he never thought he would be so happy to hear.

"S-S-Squidward...?"


	4. Chapter 4

First there was shock. Complete and utter shock. The two of them, octopus and sponge alike, couldn't take their eyes off of Squidward. It was if he was a sparkling diamond among a sea of bronze. Then slowly their eyes softened, as they began to realize that what was happening in front of them was true. He was alive. They didn't know how, considering he was impaled numerous times with glass and probably had several sprained/broken bones, but they began to take this in, the shock from thinking he was dead was wearing off. A slow smile began to form on their faces, and Spongebob's eyes were the first to well up with tears of joy. They wobbled as he tried to contain them, and as he looked at the barely alive octopus, he whispered the only thing he could make out, "Squid...ward...?" It was barely a whisper, and there was a hint of desperation in his voice, as he still wasn't sure if the miracle in front of him was really happening.

Squidward, in all the pain he was in, could barely move himself, but he knew that he was going to have to speak, or at least try to. He curled his lips in the best smile he could, which was probably more of a wobbly smirk, and answered back, "Sponge...bob..." He whispered in a hoarse voice that barely sounded like his own.

He immediately caught Squilliam's stunned expression, and the octopus smiled wobbly as his own eyes filled with tears also. Very odd to see from the esteemed Squilliam Fancyson, indeed. But it was there. Relief.

Spongebob's eyes widened in relief and a few stray tears dropped onto Squidward's face like raindrops. "Y-You're...alive..." He whispered silently, as if he still couldn't believe his eyes. Then as if he had gotten a slap to the face, the relief disappeared into concern and tears flowed out of the sponge's eyes. "YOU'RE ALIVE!" He screamed at the top of his lungs before diving into the octopus' arms and squeezing him as if he was terrified of losing him again. "Oh..S-S-Squidward! I'm...I'm s-s-so...sorry...!" He blubbered as he sobbed into his suit.

Upon hearing this, Squidward shook his head as rapidly as he could. "N-no...Spongebob...it's my...my..." But the pain in his throat was too much, and he found that he couldn't even finish a sentence. But he was determined, and he wouldn't let Spongebob think that this situation was his fault. Seeing his condition, it wasn't safe to assume that he was going to live automatically. So he opened his mouth to try to speak again.

But he was cut off abruptly by a tight squeeze on his tentacle coming from his right. He looked up to see Squilliam grasping his tentacle with his own, and tears were also flowing down his face as well. He was smiling at him warmly and a light blush was just below his nose. "Squidward... Thank...Neptune..." Was all he said as he held them tight.

Squidward honestly couldn't believe what he was seeing, but he gave him a grateful smile(as best he could manage) anyway. He knew he wasn't as much of an ass as he came off as. Spongebob on top of him sobbing, he limply lifted a tentacle(which he saw was horrifically crooked and bloody) and placed in on Spongebob's back. This seemed to startle him, and he looked down at him, blue eyes bright. Squidward opened his mouth and shakily made his way towards Spongebob's face, eventually touching his lips. They stayed like that for a while before the pain of arching his neck finally gave way and his head collapsed back to the ground. Trying to block out the pain, he opened his eyes and smiled wryly. "I... Spongebob...I...love you..." He whispered hoarsely, before his eyes suddenly shut abruptly and his world faded to black.

Immediately he heard the scared shouts of the people around him, fish calling and screaming for help. He could feel pressure on his body, like someone was shaking him violently. Then he heard a voice. "Squidward? Squidward? SQUIDWARD, ANSWER ME!"

He wanted to open his eyes and tell them everything was fine, but it felt like there was a tremendous weight on top of him that was restricting him from moving. Even when he tried to open his mouth, nothing came out. His movement was absorbed by the darkness.

Then he suddenly heard Squilliam's voice. "Everybody, calm down! He's still breathing, it's ok!" His voice was cracking as he said it, and Squidward could just picture his look of desperation. "I have my own personal team of certified doctors and nurses." He heard him say more silently, most likely to Spongebob. "I can take him to my mansion to get treated there."

"B-but Squilliam, what...what if he doesn't-" Spongebob's voice cracked and he broke down sobbing, and he could still the tear droplets soaking his shirt.

"I'm not letting that happen." Squilliam said in a stern, but somewhat reassuring voice. "Dammit, why aren't they answering?"

Suddenly Squidward felt a dizzy feeling overcome him, and the voices around him became distorted and kept getting softer. Before he lost consciousness all together, he had felt himself getting lifted onto a stretcher.

A startling bump over a curb is what awakened Squidward from his deep sleep. He immediately shot up from where he was, to feel something stinging him numerous places. He had bandages wrapped around two of his legs, one wrapped around his arm, and several antibiotic liquids plastered on all of his cuts. He noticed that all of the pieces of glass had been taken out of his skin, and were sitting in a bucket so his left. He was placed in a rather fancy(and comfortable) stretcher in what looked to be a limo.

"Well, you finally decided to wake up, eh?"

Squidward almost shrieked at the sudden sound of the voice from his right. Squilliam sat directly beside his head, and he was smirking at him, looking more relieved than smug. Squidward was slightly relieved to hear that he had gotten his vocal chords back, but he quickly turned his attention to where he was. "A-Are we in your..."

"Yes, we're in my limousine. Much nicer than yours, isn't it?" He lifted his unibrow and smirked.

Squidward glared, more upset at his sudden change in attitude than the insult. "Wow, you sound horribly concerned about me." He murmured sarcastically, and winced with pain as he tried to reposition himself to a place more comfortable.

"Heh, well I WAS I suppose, before the doctors performed surgery on you for a couple hours and told me that you were going to be perfectly fine. Even though you have two broken legs, a sprained wrist, and multiple bruises and cuts all over your body." He shuddered a bit as his eyes met the bucket holding the shards in the corner. "I had to leave the room when they started pulling the glass out... I've always been squeamish..."

Looking around the empty limo, Squidward noticed there was one person missing. "Where's Spongebob?"

"Oh, that fat lard and the chipmunk were going to drive him to my mansion." He replied, reclining back in his seat. "Which I hope won't take too much longer to get to, because I've never seen him so torn up."

"If I remember correctly, you were pretty concerned yourself, Fancyboy." Squidward said, smirking at the octopus next to him.

"What? How would you know? You were unconscious the whole time. Besides, I'm not the worrying type." He rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, right. I saw you and Spongebob standing over me. You were the one holding my tentacle, remember?" He smiled wider as he saw Squilliam turn bright red.

He scoffed, trying to hide his obvious embarrassment. "I honestly don't remember ever doing that."

"And you were even more devastated when I died." Squidward stated, thinking back to one of the scenes the angel had showed him.

Squilliam blinked for a moment. "Wait, what?" He gave him a strange look, sure he misheard.

"Don't try to lie to me. The angel showed me everything." He smiled smugly in victory. But before he could stop himself, he realized how absurd that sentence just sounded.

Squilliam blinked again and tried to find some feature in Squidward's expression that said he was joking. "What...what have you been smoking?" Was what he finally came up with.

Squidward shook his head. "Nevermind... Just a stupid dream I had..." He laid his head back down on the pillow.

Squilliam laughed at this statement. "Wow Squiddy, I didn't know you dreamed about me. That's a new level of obsession I never thought you would take." He smiled smugly.

Squidward shot up from his seat and glared at him. "I didn't mean it like that!" He protested, almost too defensively. "Besides, why would I want to dream about YOU anyway?" He folded his arms.

"Because I'm sexy god, Squidward." He batted a tentacle and growled suggestively. "Everybody has dreams about me. But I never expected YOU would, of all people. Was it hot?"

Squidward drew back. "No, of course not!" He blushed bright red.

"Your blushing tells me otherwise." And he laughed when he saw Squidward's look of shock. "I know it must have been hot.. Tell me all the details, Squidsy." He leaned his head on his tentacles, looking playfully intrigued.

"Don't call me Squidsy!" Squidward demanded, glaring at the octopus hatefully. "Just forget what I said, it doesn't mean anything anyway."

"Dreams always mean something, Squidward. And if you had a dream about me, that DEFINITELY means something..." He raised his unibrow and smiled. "Did it make you wet?"

Squidward was taken aback by this and he whipped his head to stare into the octopus' eyes, stunned. "W-what do you mean?" He couldn't have meant what he thought he did.

"Don't play coy, Squidward. You know exactly what I mean." He grinned wider. "But I'll repeat it for you if you want. Did your little fantasy about me, sexy as I am, make you aroused?" And he burst into laughter as he finished.

Squidward's eyes widened. "EWWW! YOU SICK BASTARD!" And he swatted at Squilliam to get him to stop his incessant laughter.

Wiping a tear from his eyes, Squilliam gathered himself and patted Squidward's head lightly. "I'm only kidding! You always take everything too literally." He suppressed a laugh as he stared at the still disturbed Squidward. "You have to admit, that was funny."

"NO! That was ANYTHING but funny!" Squidward yelled, trying to get the disturbing images out of his mind. "That was disgusting..."

"Well, your reaction was hilarious." Squilliam stated plainly before sitting up normally. He then began to ponder for a few moments and finally said, "But what was it about?"

"What?"

"Your dream. About me."

"Like you really want to know?" Squidward asked sarcastically, scoffing.

"Not really, but it keeps the conversation going." He looked at Squidward, actually intrigued.

Squidward was in disbelief at first, but he figured it wouldn't hurt telling him. It would give him the satisfaction that Squilliam's future self would actually turn out to care about him after all. "Ok so this...'dream' started off with this angel that looked exactly like Spongebob-"

"Are you positive you haven't been smoking something?" Squilliam interrupted, suppressing a laugh. "Because I remember you being quite the pot-head in high school."

Squidward narrowed his eyes. "Shut up and let me finish. So then..." And he told Squilliam the rest of what he had seen. Not just the parts with him in it, but everything, including the scene with Spongebob and Patrick. And Squilliam was very much interested in the whole thing, asking serious questions as he told it. And he blushed bright red when he got to the part at the end, involving the two of them.

"Oh yeah, like I'd do that.." He rolled his eyes at the part where he moved into Squidward's old house. But he didn't smirk like he usually did. He actually looked like he was trying to hide something. "Give up my AMAZING mansion out of guilt for the person I despise."

Squidward scoffed. "You know, you didn't seem to 'despise'" He raised his tentacles to make air quotes. "me so much, when people didn't know you were gay."

"Heh. Well they know now." He said, half smiling. "My followers and the press. But of course they don't care with _my _skills."

Squidward sighed heavily. "And of course they care when it's someone talentless and vulnerable." He said, frowning as he looked over all the bruises on his body. They reminded him of high school. And how every afternoon after school, he would get beaten. All just because he was gay. "That being me."

"Honestly, we have nothing to be ashamed of. I think you should take a bold step and _flaunt. _it. That's what I did. And look where I am." He said, waving his unibrow.

"Well maybe _you_ don't have anything to be ashamed of, but as far as _I'm_ concerned..." He stopped himself, not knowing how to put what he was about to say in a way that would make sense. "Well basically anyone like me would get that kind of abuse.." He looked towards the ground for a bit, trying to hide his solemn facial expression.

Squilliam immediately felt guilty as he saw Squidward turn away. Even when he says something that tries to help him, he always ends up upsetting him in the end. Ever since high school, he has tried making it up to him, but it just wasn't in his nature. He didn't treat anybody else the way he treated Squidward; there had always been something that gave him pleasure by seeing him blush with embarrassment and try flimsily to fight against his rich social stature. He knew it was wrong to do, as it only made Squidward hate him more, but there was something that he craved about seeing him so flustered. Something about the man that he absolutely wanted. No, _needed. _Was it that sexy smile that he sometimes pulled out, along with those distractingly amazing eyes that showed his dominance? Or was it that way he would show his vulnerability with that cute whimper and blush that spread across his whole face when he was embarrassed? '_Dammit Squilliam, you're getting hard from this...stop thinking like that..' _He thought to himself as he watched Squidward lay back down on the stretcher, sweaty from the warmth of the limousine. He saw the sad, depressed look on the octopus' face as he could tell he was reliving his past, when they dated, and he felt compelled that he should say something that would possibly make him feel better. And before he could stop himself he blurted out, "I haven't always hated you, you know..." And he regretted it as soon as it came out, and he cringed waiting for his opposite's reaction.

Squidward's closed eyes immediately shot open, and he turned to the side with a surprised look on his face, sure he misheard. "Wait, what...?"

Squilliam felt a bead of sweat trickle down his forehead as he grew hotter as he stared into the octopus' confused eyes. He mentally slapped himself out of his trance before saying, "You heard what I said, I don't have to repeat it for you."

Squidward blinked in shock, but he realized that Squilliam had meant it, looking at how he was flicking his eyes from the floor to the wall-hoping that Squidward would change the subject. "Since when have you not hated me?" He asked.

Squilliam knew the answer. He knew it very well. He had never hated him, except when their secret was exposed to the high school and he thought that he would get caught, but eventually got off scott-free. But he could never say that in a million years. But what would he say? He was(slightly) trying to make Squidward feel better, so he couldn't say something shallow. He couldn't pretend that he hated him forever. He might as well act mature for once and tell him, as hard as it would be. "N-n-never..." He said in the most inaudible tone possible.

Squidward gave him another confused look. "What? What did you say?"

Squilliam groaned. He certainly wasn't making this easy. "I said _never, _ok? There's your answer, Squiddy. Indulge it, that's all you're getting." He quickly turned away, blush covering his face. '_Dammit, you pick now...NOW of all times to start blushing... Way to be the dominant one, Squilly.' _He cursed to himself in his mind.

Squidward just sat there in complete shock, unsure that he just heard right. "W-wait, did you just say..._never_?" And he said the last word with loud emphasision, and a smirk formed on his lips. He couldn't tell whether or not Squilliam was playing with him or not, so he knew he needed to be as interrogating as possible.

"Neptune, Squidward, _yes _that's what I said!" He said, desperately trying to change the conversation. "Now can you please-"

"Turn around."

"What?"

"Turn. around." He repeated, his smile getting wider.

"Why should I do what you tell me?" Squilliam countered back, getting redder and redder.

Suddenly he felt a strong grip on his shoulders, and before he could do anything, he was spun around forcefully by Squidward. Upon seeing how red his face was, Squidward stifled the laugh that was trying to escape his mouth. "Oh my, how the tables have turned, Squilly dear." He mocked, now having to cover his mouth with a tentacle to stifle his laughter. "Look at your face!"

Squilliam glared at him and rolled his eyes. "Very mature, Squidward. Don't think I won't call my doctors back in here so they can stick all of that glass back into your body." He narrowed his eyes.

Squidward just shook his head. "I'm sorry...I just didn't think that _you _would...mean something like that..." And he started to laugh uncontrollably.

Squilliam watched this display in front of him, and sighed, wondering why he lusted over him. "I did, Squidward." He said calmly.

Squidward immediately stopped upon hearing this and looked up in surprise. "You...did?" He said in utter shock.

All Squilliam did was respond with a nod. "So you can stop laughing now." He was slightly hurt that Squidward didn't take his statement seriously. But honestly why would he after he had been such an immature jackass to him over the years?

"B-but...b-but when we w-were..." Squidward stuttered, trying to put the pieces together. "But y-you always t-treat me like-"

"It's called an act, Squidward." Squilliam said, feeling a great weight off his chest as he admitted this. "Pretending. Deceiving. Whatever you want to call it." And he looked Squidward right in the eye, as serious as he could possibly be.

"B-but, why would you-" But before he could finish, the limo came to a slow stop, and the door to their right opened. One of Squilliam's chauffeurs stood outside, holding the door open.

Squilliam got up from his seat, and before getting out, he leaned over to whisper in Squidward's ear. "Because I still wanted you.." And he grabbed the end of the stretcher carefully and slowly rolled it out of the limo.

And Squidward's jaw dropped once again. The third time that day, maybe? But as he looked at the octopus casually strolling him towards his huge mansion, he found himself wondering. "Do...do you...still...?" He asked, slightly in a whisper, his voice still carrying out in the pitch black sky.

Squilliam chuckled slightly. "Heh, well you and Spongebob are obviously inseparable. I'm not about to come between that." He gave him a slight smile. "You know I'll find someone, Squiddy."

Squidward blinked in shock, and he knew that he would never again be able to look at Squilliam the same way again. And he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Soup is ready!" Spongebob called to Squidward in a high falsetto voice, now sounding practically like music to the octopus' ears. He had stayed for a few days at Squilliam's mansion, along with Spongebob, who practically crushed his bones to see he was alive when they first got there, and it was refreshing to go back to the peace and quiet(maybe not quiet) of his own home. Being at Squilliam's was a bit awkward for the first night after hearing what he had admitted to him. But by the second day, Squilliam had acted like nothing had happened, like he hadn't said anything. He acted friendly towards the both of them, but went back to his old habits of teasing him. Which Squidward didn't mind, because he figured that was the way it should stay. Although he did notice a few winks from the gaudy octopus throughout the days..

But he was ready to move on. He would question him later. As he saw the piping hot bowl of soup coming towards him, along with Spongebob, who had been irresistibly joyful since his recovery from the accident, he smiled gratefully at his boyfriend. Immediately after Spongebob had shown up at Squilliam's mansion, he told him everything that he had seen(and miraculously the sponge had believed him) and how wrong he was about what he did, and told him he loved him at least thirty times. And of course Spongebob forgave him, although at the time he wasn't really worried about any of that, more so about his wounds. But ever since then, things had been better for the both of them.

"Monsieur's la soupé ." Spongebob spoke in a thick French accent, slowly handing him the bowl. His blue eyes were brighter than they ever had been. "You like my chicken noodle soup, right?"

"Love it." Squidward said, smiling at him warmly before leaning to the side to kiss him on the forehead.

Spongebob smiled back before coming around to sit on the other side of the bed. "I know how before you complained how it didn't have enough flavor, so I added some spices to it to give it more taste." He scratched his head. "Now what were they..."

Squidward didn't really care, as he was sure it would taste good either way. As he lifted the spoon to his mouth and the soup sat on his tongue, he suddenly felt it start to burn up. Immediately he spit it out onto the sheets and quickly grabbed the glass of water that sat on his bedside table and drank quickly, trying to make the burning pain go away.

Spongebob looked at this and slapped his forehead. "Ohhhhh yeah, I added some cayenne pepper, since I know you like spicy foods." He saw Squidward desperately downing his glasses of water in a futile attempt to cool his burning tongue. "W-was it too much?" He asked, worriedly.

Finally after a few cold glasses, Squidward finally feels the pain go away and he sets the soup on the bedside table. He sighs in relief. "Just a little bit..." He whispers, sticking his tongue out and waving his tentacle above it to cool it down.

Spongebob gets a worried expression on his face. "A-are you ok?" Ever since the accident, he had been more concerned about Squidward's well-being. Somewhat annoying, but cute at the same time.

"I think I'll live, Spongebob." Squidward murmured, slightly laughing. "Maybe you could help me cool it down?" He looked at him seductively and leaned forward.

Spongebob took this hint and squealed with delight as his lips met Squidward's. They kissed for a couple of minutes, before Spongebob moved to Squidward's side and wrapped his arms around his neck. He suddenly pulled away for a moment. "Are you sure this isn't...too much?" He asked, breathing heavily from excitement.

Squidward rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, Spongebob..." And he leaned forward for another kiss.

But Spongebob pulled away, still looking slightly concerned. "I don't know... I still feel like what happened was...because of me...kissing you like-"

Squidward clapped a tentacle over the sponge's mouth and glared. "Spongebob. How many times do I have to tell you, that it was MY fault? Do you know I still go to sleep guilty as hell because of what I said to you?"

"But, I was the one who got you mad by...kissing you..."

"No. No, no, no, no, no!" He grabbed Spongebob and set him down at the side of his bed. He looked him in the eye. "Now, repeat after me, ok? I, Spongebob Squarepants..."

"I, Spongebob Squarepants..."

"Has absolutely _nothing..._" He waved his tentacles with this.

"Has absolutely NOTHING..." Spongebob repeated the motion spazzily, slightly smiling now.

"To be sorry or ashamed of."

"To be sorry or ashamed of." Spongebob finished, and looked at the ground unsurely. Then he looked back up, raising a finger. "But-"

"Do we have to do that again?"

"No."

"Good. Now get back on the bed." He smiled seductively.

Spongebob sighed and smiled slightly, trying to relax himself as he saw that there was nothing but seriousness in his eyes. He got back onto the bed and wrapped his arms around him from the side. "...I'm so happy that...you're ok..." He whispered, nuzzling his head into Squidward's shirt.

"I know. I've been told by many people..." He said, thinking back to all the relieved faces that visited him while he was in Squilliam's house. Patrick, Mr. Krabs, Sandy, and many other citizens from Bikini Bottom that he knew. And none of them weren't alleviated to see him alive. "Especially you."

"Well, um...yeah... Because your visions that you saw...they kinda...scared me." Spongebob whispered, sounding more solemn. "Just the thought of...being alone like that..."

Squidward turned to face Spongebob(as best he could, having a broken leg) and looked at him sternly. "Spongebob, that will NEVER happen." He said.

Spongebob opened his eyes, and nothing but pure fear blazed through them as they welled up. So much crying in the span of three days. "I know it's just...you described it as...a dark place and...and I had a dream about it last night..." He cringed at the thought. "A-a-and I was all alone, and there was no light, and these voices were mocking me about...about how everyone around me was...gone..." A tear slid down his face, and he looked at Squidward with fright.

Squidward wrapped his arms around him warmly, and Spongebob clung to him like a security blanket. "It's ok, Spongebob... I'm not leaving you, ok? Nobody is..." He rubbed his back soothingly.

Spongebob shivered. "I'm s-sorry, I was just s-so scared when I saw you...and I thought you were d-d..." He couldn't finish the word, and he clung harder at the horrible memory.

Squidward held him closer. "I know, but it's not going to happen again..." He whispered. "Ok, Sponge?"

"Y-yeah..." Spongebob murmured from under him, and he lifted his head so he could lock eyes with his boyfriend. He kissed him softly on the lips, and looked at him, eyes sparkling wildly when he pulled away. "I love you, Squidward."

"Love you too, Spongebob..." Squidward murmured, and he felt happiness bubble up inside him as he said those words. Words that he would have had trouble saying before, if it weren't for that angel.

And as the two cuddled in Squidward's Easter Island Head, the angel from before floated gracefully above them, smiling warmly as it looked at the two lovers, who it was sure would never part.

~~~~**THE END**~~~~


End file.
